


A reminder of our love

by ScilesMcCallinski



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, How Do I Tag, M/M, Multi, Tattoos, mentioned Derek Hale - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-04
Updated: 2018-10-04
Packaged: 2019-07-24 23:37:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16185569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScilesMcCallinski/pseuds/ScilesMcCallinski
Summary: It was Stiles who suggested the idea as well, which definitely caught Scott and Lydia by surprise. They had been exploring Pier 39 and took a break, sitting on one of the benches so that they could eat the funnel fries Stiles just bought. And then he just stopped talking in the middle of a conversation, his eyes going wide, and said, "we should get a tattoo."





	A reminder of our love

Of all the things Scott expected to be doing during his weekend trip to see his dad in San Francisco, sitting in a tattoo parlour with Stiles and Lydia wasn't one of them. Not even close. 

It was Stiles who suggested the idea as well, which definitely caught Scott and Lydia by surprise. They had been exploring Pier 39 and took a break, sitting on one of the benches so that they could eat the funnel fries Stiles just bought. And then he just stopped talking in the middle of a conversation, his eyes going wide, and said, "we should get a tattoo." 

Scott and Lydia had both been more than a little bit confused, so he hurriedly explained. Turns out, he had seen a sign for a tattoo parlour that does walk-ins and had suddenly remembered a conversation they had had a few months ago, about a week before they were all leaving Beacon Hills for college. 

Stiles had suggested that he and Lydia get the pack tattoo, as a sort of way to feel less homesick while they were away.

"And to ward off any future werewolf packs or hunters, or whatever the next supernatural thing that decides to show up is," he had said. "Make sure they know we belong to a True Alpha before they decide to try and kill us."

At the time, Lydia had agreed, and Scott had laughed, saying he thought it was a great idea, thinking they were both joking. Then Scott left for UC Davis, Lydia for MIT, and Stiles for the FBI academy. He thought that was it, no more talk of tattoos. 

Until now, of course. 

Really, Scott blames Derek; he was the one who told them about pack tattoos, and how it's supposed to "strengthen the bond of the pack" whenever a member gets it. He wasn't even subtle when he said that it affects the Alpha, makes their connection to the members of the pack stronger, and looked directly at Stiles and Lydia. 

He wouldn't have minded so much had he not then decided to casually try and slip in a hint about "mates" as he refers to them, and how it's even stronger when the mate of an Alpha gets the pack tattoo. Stiles and Lydia definitely noticed, but neither of them said a thing about it.

"Dude, are you sure you want to do this?" Scott asks. Stiles looks up at him, eyebrows lifting slightly, and Scott simply points to his arm on the rest between him and Lydia, his fingers scratching at the loose pieces of fabric. "I could probably smell the anxiety coming off you from ten miles away." 

Stiles quickly stops, laying his hand flat. He shrugs and tries to play it off, acting casual about the whole thing as he grins. 

"I'm good. Seriously, don't worry. I want to do this." 

His heartbeat stays completely steady, no upticks, no hint of a lie. Which obviously, Scott's relieved about; he wouldn't want Stiles to be doing this if he really didn't want to, but was just saying he did. He wouldn't want either of them to do that.

A second later, Stiles' leg is bouncing up and down as he glances around, stretching his neck around to look at every inch of the room like it's suddenly the most important thing in the world. 

Lydia quickly rests her hand on top of Stiles' while Scott shifts a little closer to him, tempted to put a hand on his leg to get him to stop. It's not like he would mind, but Lydia's attempts seem to be enough of a distraction.

"You know," she says, "we never did talk about where exactly we're getting the tattoos." 

Stiles stops examining one of the designs on the wall. "Oh yeah." He looks at Scott, his head tilting slightly as a mischievous smile pulls at his lips. "Any suggestions?"

Scott rolls his eyes at the glint in Stiles' eyes as he says it, knowing where he's hoping the conversation will go.

"Well, considering the reason you're getting them, I would say probably somewhere visible. I'm not entirely sure any werewolves or hunters or whatever are gonna inspect you for a tattoo to see if you're part of a pack before trying to kill you."

Stiles appears mildly disappointed by his answer, but then his face lights up and that mischievous glint is going nowhere.

"That's fine by me." He leans back in his seat, turning his head to glance from Scott to Lydia, and back again. "There's only two supernatural creatures I would want inspecting my body anyway." 

Scott closes his eyes for a second, resisting the urge to groan as he bites back a grin. He's gotten used to these types of comments over the last few months, ever since that week before leaving for college. Doesn't mean they don't make him look around on instinct, checking to see if anyone's looking at them, overheard what he said. Just in case.

Lydia, always the calm and collected one in these situations, smirks, leaning towards him. Scott's eyes flit down to Stiles' throat, the movement of him swallowing catching his eye and it just reminds him that Stiles still isn't used to this, to Lydia treating him and Scott the way she used to treat her ex-boyfriends. Only nicer, of course.

"I guess it's a shame Jackson and Isaac are out of town then," she says, and his shoulders slump, his mouth falling open in disbelief. She feigns innocence as she adds, "I mean, they are who you're talking about, right? Did you not have a thing for them?" 

"Wha—" Stiles gapes at her, his eyes narrowing. "No! I have taste, thank you. They're the only two crazy enough to date each other." 

Lydia lifts an eyebrow at him and Scott snorts as Stiles falters, realising what he said. 

"I mean, not that I'm calling you crazy or anything," he says with a slight laugh that's more nervous than anything. "I just meant that... well, you know—they're Jackson and Isaac." He rolls his eyes, waving his free hand in the air, quickly composing himself. "Sure, they're attractive. And do they both have jawlines sharper than anything I've ever seen, and eyes that are unfairly bright and surprisingly nice to look at? Yes, they do."

Scott has to cover his mouth with his hand, leaning his elbow on the rest between him and Stiles as he and Lydia share an amused look. Lydia just smirks as he continues, apparently not quite done yet. 

"And do they also both just so happen to be supernatural, which immediately, for some weird reason I can't explain, makes them more attractive? Again, yes. And do they both look pretty good after a lacrosse game, and after they've been in the showers? Of course they do. But..." he wavers, his voice coming to a halt, the rest of his argument getting caught in his throat as his eyebrows furrow. "Hold on, where was I going with this again?" 

"Trying to deny that you ever had a thing for Jackson and Isaac?" Scott supplies, his voice shaking with barely contained laughter.

Stiles turns, pointing a finger at him as he nods. "Yes, thank you. So, as attractive as they both are, I would never, and have never, have a thing for either of them. They're both assholes with the personality of a Chihuahua. And not the cute Chihuahua's. The little demon ones that snap at your ankles every time you walk by them."

"By 'little demon ones,' I assume you're not talking about Prada?" 

Stiles looks at Lydia, eyes widening a little as he nods slowly. "Yeah, no, definitely not. She's—she's one of the cute ones. Absolutely. Not a snappy little demon."

Lydia's eyes narrow and Scott can tell she doesn't believe him for a second. He has to force himself not to laugh as he drops his hand, nudging Stiles' arm with a grin. 

"Good to know you have a type, dude," he jokes. 

Stiles rolls his eyes. "Please. Jackson and Isaac are far from being my type." His lips twitch up at the corners. "But you're right. I do seem to have a type. Sweet, supernatural, total badasses who could both kick my ass, and somehow both failed to notice that I've been in love with them for years." 

Scott doesn't resist this time, groaning as he says, "okay, are you ever going to let that go?" 

Lydia scoffs. "Please, have you met him? Of course he isn't." She looks at Stiles and he just grins. "You're holding that over our heads for the rest of our lives, aren't you?" 

"Oh, Lydia. Dear sweet, Lydia," Stiles says, leaning closer to her, a smug sort of smile on his face. She stays completely unfazed, simply raising an eyebrow at him. "You are absolutely correct and there is no chance in hell that either of you are forgetting how completely oblivious you both were for ten years."

Just as he finishes saying it, his eyes drift away from them and Scott follows his gaze to the girl standing near the door that just opened. It's not hard to tell she's the tattooist, judging by the ink that travels all the way up both her arms. It also might have something to do with the fact that the two girls who walk out of the room thank her as they wave goodbye and head for the exit.

She looks over at the three of them with a smile, raising her eyebrows. They take it as a sign and finally get up as she approaches them, Stiles being forced to drop their hands now.

Scott half lingers behind, seeing as how he isn't the one getting the tattoo. Lydia explains the design, gesturing to Scott as she does so, and he's glad he didn't bother to bring his jacket with him so that the tattooist can actually see what she's talking about.

Once the tattooist—who introduces herself as Caitlin—has a good idea of what they want and asks for ID, she gestures for Stiles, who offers to go first, to follow her into the room she came out of so that she can get the stencil done then start. 

Stiles pauses, glancing at Scott and Lydia. "Uh, can they come in?" he asks, turning back to Caitlin. 

"If you want them to," she says with a shrug, moving back over to the room.

"I do," he quickly responds, but it's more for Scott and Lydia as he looks at the two of them again. Scott doesn't even need to check his chemo-signals, the way he's pulling at the edge of his sleeve and his slightly too wide eyes all the indication he needs to know his anxiety's returned full force. "You're coming in with me, right?"

Scott nods, sending him a reassuring smile as he places a hand on Stiles' shoulder. "Of course we are, dude. You came in with me, remember? You seriously think we'd let you get a tattoo alone?" 

"Yeah, and besides," Lydia hooks an arm through Stiles', drawing both their attention to her as she smiles, "this way, I can see if I really want to go to all the trouble. If it's too painful, I'm out." 

Stiles gapes at her, eyes narrowing again, and Scott just shakes his head, hiding his amusement. He knows she's going to go through with it either way, but she's clearly having fun teasing Stiles. And it distracts him from thinking about anything needle-related, so, he's not complaining.

"Come on." Scott lightly pushes Stiles toward Caitlin, who's just watching them, waiting for them to follow her into the room. 

He grumbles something about how he should change his mind and make Lydia go first, but he allows them both to pull him into the room all the same. A few minutes later, once Stiles is settled in the chair, Scott and Lydia sitting on two of the stools beside him, Caitlin finally asks the question that they never got around to answering outside. 

"So, where do you want it?" 

Stiles pauses, once again glancing over at Scott and Lydia as he seems to think about it. Then he turns back to Caitlin and points to his right wrist. "Here. Definitely here."

Scott's a little surprised. Not because they haven't actually talked about this, but because of how confidently he says it, like he's thought about it a lot. Which, would make sense; Stiles does like to plan things out, even if they don't always go the way he wants them to, or he doesn't plan far enough ahead. It's just that Scott wasn't quite expecting him to pick somewhere so visible considering his past hatred for tattoos.

Still, he's secretly glad that he isn't choosing to hide it.

"Okay, well, I'll have to prep the area first, then I'll let you see what it would like with a stencil," Caitlin says. "Sound good?"

Stiles nods, and so she begins. They talk while she preps his wrist, and after he's confirmed that he's certain, Scott and Lydia go back and forth between distracting him when that low buzzing starts up and Caitlin asks if he's ready, assuring him that it's not going to hurt as much as he thinks it will.

As soon as the needle's against his skin, Stiles leans his head back, his eyes fixed on the ceiling. He takes a deep breath and Scott can hear the shakiness of it, his heartbeat jumping all over the place. 

"Hey, dude, I just had an idea," Scott says as he places his hand on Stiles' arm, gentle and hoping to calm him down. It'll definitely make the next thirty minutes or so much easier if he doesn't spend them focusing on the needle poking at his skin. "When we go back to my dad's, we could watch Star Wars?" 

Stiles doesn't lift his head but he does turn it to look at him, raising his eyebrows. "Wait, seriously? You're finally gonna watch them?" 

Scott shrugs and says, "yeah, why not? I mean," he glances at Caitlin, the needle in her hand moving over Stiles' skin, "you've been trying to get me to watch them for years. Might as well do it now, while we're here." His gaze shifts to Lydia as he adds, "besides, I'm not the only one here who hasn't seen any of them."

Lydia shoots him a mock glare. "Way to throw me under the bus."

"Okay, it's official," Stiles says. "We are watching every single Star Wars movie tonight."  

"Dude, that'll take, like, an entire day," Scott points out with a grin. "How about, we watch the first one?" Stiles opens his mouth like he's going to protest, but Scott quickly adds, "and then Lydia and I can both pick a film we want to watch. It'll be like a movie night." 

"You mean date night?" Stiles quickly interjects, raising his eyebrows with a cheeky grin that Scott fell in love with far too easily.

He rolls his eyes and notices the way Caitlin glances up at them, curiosity written all over her face. "No, I mean movie night." Stiles' mouth turns down in a pout and Scott adds, "you can have date night once we're back home."

Stiles huffs just as Lydia says, "well if either of you cares, my movie choice is The Notebook." She glances between the two of them and shrugs. "What? It's a classic." 

Stiles rolls his eyes while Scott just smiles, neither of them trying to argue with her. Mainly because it won't be their first time watching The Notebook; when you're in a relationship with Lydia Martin, it's inevitable.

They somehow managed to avoid watching it two weeks in a row like they always heard Jackson complaining about in the locker rooms, but it turns out, they actually kind of like it. They may or may not have cried the three times that Lydia did convince them to watch it.

"Okay, okay, fine," Stiles agrees with a sigh. "We'll watch A New Hope episode IV—which is the first one, not the fourth, I know, it's confusing—then The Notebook, and then whatever movie you choose. It better be a good one considering we're getting tattoos for you."

He glances down at his wrist for the first time since Caitlin started, then immediately looks away again. Scott doesn't even realise he's started stroking Stiles' arm, tracing soothing little patterns. It's just more of an instinct, really, knowing exactly how to ease Stiles' anxiety a little bit with just a touch. 

Lydia's learned as well, slipping her hand into Stiles', just like before, when they were waiting outside. Stiles' eyes flick down to her hand, then to Scott's and he doesn't say anything but a soft smile spreads across his face. It seems to work, keeping him distracted as they continue talking to him, making Caitlin's job a hell of a lot easier as he stops moving around and fidgeting.

* * *

 

"Okay, we're all good," Caitlin says, slipping her gloves off. She points at the plastic wrap around Stiles' wrist that she just finished adjusting. "Remember to leave that on for an hour." 

He nods, letting her know he understands, but his fingers are already running over the cling-film-like material like he's itching to pull it off right now. Scott makes a mental note to make sure he doesn't.

She looks at Lydia and smiles, jerking her head at the chair. "Your turn then?" 

Before Lydia can respond, the muffled sound of a phone ringing interrupts. Caitlin gives a dramatic sigh that makes Scott chuckle and she grins. 

"I'll be back in a minute," she says as she gets to her feet. She waves her hand vaguely in the general direction of them, her eyes on Lydia. "While I'm away, you could think about where you want yours?" 

Then she opens the door, disappearing out of the room to go answer the phone.

"Oh my god," Stiles breathes out as soon as she's out of the room, slumping down in the chair. He closes his eyes, leaning his head back. "I can't believe I actually just did that. I got a tattoo. Me. A tattoo. My dad might actually kill me, but it's okay. He can't say anything anyway; I know he has one on his shoulder."

"He does?" Scott and Lydia ask at the same time, brows furrowing.

"Oh yeah, he got it when he was around..." he squints, "sixteen? I don't know," he waves a hand in the air, "it was around our age." 

Scott can't help but be surprised; he never really expected the Sheriff, of all people, to have a tattoo. It's weird that he never knew before now. Normally Stiles would have told him as soon as he found out. 

"Wow, I didn't see that one coming," Lydia says, voicing Scott's exact thoughts. 

Stiles chuckles, his eyes on the ceiling as he nods in agreement. "Yeah, it's a shocker. Believe it or not, it's, uh, it's an anchor. Not a big one. But, uh... he and my mom both got one at the same time, before they were going off to college."

He pauses, swallowing, and Scott immediately puts the pieces together. 

"It was supposed to be a reminder for if they went to different ones, or if my dad ever had to go somewhere. What with him studying to be in law enforcement." He rubs his hand over his covered tattoo, eyes still fixed on the ceiling. "They worried a lot about something happening, so the tattoos were, uh—they were a way to still feel like they were close to each other even if something did happen."

The words seem to hang in the air, thick with the realisation that makes Scott's throat feel a little too tight. That's why he was so insistent on this, why it seemed so important to him that he and Lydia got the tattoo, why he suggested it a week before they were going off to different colleges.

That's probably why he didn't tell Scott or Lydia about all of it. He knew they would figure out that the reason he wanted to get them so badly was because of everything that's happened—that's still happening. Their lives are far too unpredictable and something could happen to any one of them and—

Stiles swipes his sleeve across his eye and forces another chuckle as he blinks rapidly. "High school sweethearts, huh? They're real sappy romantics. So glad we're not like that."

"Well, we are sort of getting matching tattoos," Lydia points out, taking the risk of edging close to acknowledging what he didn't say. 

Stiles rolls his eyes, shifting in the chair so that he's basically on his side, looking at the two of them. "Yeah, I guess we are." He attempts a grin and it's lopsided and a little off, but it's enough. "Does that make the three of us high school sweethearts in progress?" 

The way he says it, along with the lopsided grin he attempts, lets them know they're right about his reasoning behind all of this, why he told them about his mom and dad getting the tattoos. Scott has to force himself not to try and assure him that nothing's going to happen, things aren't going to turn out the way they did for his mom and dad. He doesn't though; now isn't the time, they can talk about it later back at his dad's.

Instead, he chooses to let Stiles go a little longer without having to talk about it, and smiles as he asks, "Wouldn't we have had to been dating throughout high school for that?" 

"And whose fault is that we weren't?" Stiles shoots back, and Scott and Lydia just share a look that they both understand perfectly. Then he shrugs, shooting them another grin, this one a little brighter. "But we bend the rules all the time. Who cares? We can change the definition." 

"Wouldn't that just make us sweethearts?" Lydia chimes in, her own smile growing. 

"Okay, you two are sorta ruining the moment here."

Scott holds his hands up in front of him, biting back a laugh. "Sorry, sorry. You're right. We're high school sweethearts who bend the rules."  

In the middle of saying it, the door opens and Caitlin walks back in. It's obvious she catches at least part of it what he said if the way she raises an eyebrow but doesn't say anything, her lips quirking up at the corners, is anything to go on.

"Sorry 'bout that," she says, referring to the phone ringing as she points to the door. Lydia simply waves it off with a smile and she takes her previous seat on the stool beside Stiles, opposite them. "So, have you thought about where you want yours?" 

Lydia glances at Scott, then at Stiles, her tongue darting out across her lips. Scott can tell straight away she's made up her mind about it, and he's not sure why but she seems almost nervous about it. He gets the feeling their conversation has something to do with it but he's not sure,

She nods, and Caitlin grins. "That's great! Well, uh..." 

She looks at Stiles and it takes a few seconds for him to look up and realise. 

"Oh, right, yeah, of course, sorry," he says, eyes widening as he quickly gets out of the chair. 

He steps to the side, letting Lydia take his place before taking hers and sitting beside Scott. Scott can't help but notice how unnecessarily close he is, their arms brushing every time one of them even breathes. It's something he seems to enjoy doing all the time with him and Lydia, feeling this need to be as close as possible. Neither of them mind.

"Okay," Caitlin says, addressing Lydia. "So, same design, right?" Lydia nods again. "And, do you want it in the same place as your..." her eyes dart to Scott and Stiles, "friend?"

The pause in between the words is just a little too long, a little too emphasized. No one says anything about it, because Stiles has finally learned that correcting random strangers by saying, "actually, we're dating," only leads to a bunch of questions that get awkward real fast and end in him frustratedly trying to explain that, "no, our relationship isn't just the same as an open relationship nor is it just about having a threesome whenever we want—jesus christ, dude, what kind of fucking question is that?"

They figured out quite quickly that it's easier to let people assume whatever they want and just ignore their assumptions. Although, all three of them have been in at least one situation where they can't take it and just blurt out the truth. It tends to be when someone's eyeing one—or two—of them up and—well, Scott's the least jealous out of the three of him, but even he's snapped at a guy trying to proposition Stiles and Lydia into a threesome with him after they've told him they're in a poly relationship.

Scott looks down at Stiles' hand, their arms touching. He can't help but smile at the way that Stiles' fingers are carefully peeling at the edge of the plastic wrap covering his tattoo before quickly pressing it back down.

"Uh, no," Lydia says, glancing over at Scott and Stiles as well. Her confidence overpowers her nerves as she turns back to Caitlin and holds out her left hand. For a second, Scott thinks she's about to point to her wrist as well; it's not like it's the same as Stiles, after all.

But then she taps her third finger. 

Lydia meets his eyes, and the look she sends him is questioning, asking if he thinks she should do it. He blinks for a second, eyebrows somewhere up his forehead before he glances at Stiles to find him grinning, looking quite pleased about her decision. Scott turns back to Lydia, his stomach doing that weird flipping thing that he's still not sure if he likes, and smiles.

She seems to understand his little nod, a smile of her own spreading across her face.

"You sure?" Caitlin asks. "Tattoos on your fingers can hurt quite a bit. Especially since it's your first one."  
  
She glances at Scott and Stiles again, and this time he's sure that he notices something. It's just the obviously forced neutral expression on her face, the way she's been watching them since they came in, all curious. He has a feeling he knows exactly what's going through her head, but he ignores it.  
  
Besides, why would a random stranger assume something like that? All she knows is that they're pretty much getting matching tattoos. Even if she does say something, she seems sweet, not like the usual judgy people.

"I'm sure," Lydia says, an air of confidence to her words, even if she still has the scent of nervousness and worry radiating off of her in waves.

She really does know how to act completely calm and collected, he notices. Which, really shouldn't come as a surprise to him considering all the years she spent pretending to be someone she's not.

"Okay, well, I'm still going to do the stencil, just to let you see what it's gonna look like," Caitlin says as she leans over to grab a new pair of surgical gloves. "Then you can decide if you're sure about where you want it." 

Lydia nods in understanding as Caitlin slips the gloves on, getting everything ready. 

Stiles leans forward a little, grinning as he asks, "do you need me to hold your hand? It doesn't hurt that much, but... you know. Just in case." Then his eyes dart to Scott and he adds, "or Scotty here could do it. Your choice." 

Scott pretends once again not to notice Caitlin's curiosity growing, her hands pausing for a split second as she throws them another glance. He just shakes his head fondly at the two of them.

Lydia hums like she's considering it, then she leans her elbow on the armrest, holding her hand up, her fingers spread. "I think I'll take Scott." 

He smiles as he slips his hand into Lydia's, fingers easily slotting into place, practically an instinct now. Stiles huffs, feigning exasperation, but it doesn't last for very long before he's rolling his eyes and his lips twitch at the corners.

His hand goes back to playing with the plastic wrap and Scott quickly places his other hand on top of it, stopping him. Stiles just shoots him a little smile, half-grateful. Scott's attempts to help his restlessness don't last for long as his leg's bouncing up and down a few seconds later, but it still seems to help at least a little bit.

It doesn't take long before Caitlin's all done with the prepping and the stencil, or for Lydia to confirm that she's sure about wanting the tattoo on her finger. And so she begins with the actual tattoo. 

Lydia squeezes Scott's hand, light and barely any pressure when the needle first touches her skin and catches her by surprise. Stiles nudges her leg and sends her a reassuring smile and a thumbs up, and after that, she relaxes a little more. At least enough for eyes to drift over Caitlin's tattoos and curiosity to get the best of her as she asks about some of them, especially interested in the bow and arrow.

Time flies by pretty quickly, the conversation switching back and forth between subjects. Before they know it, they're all done, and after paying and thanking Caitlin, they leave, walking out of the parlour and back through Pier 39, taking their time as the sky slowly turns from blue to shades of orange and pink.

* * *

 

They finally arrive back at his dad's house. Stiles and Lydia immediately make their way to the kitchen where his dad's leaning against the island in the middle of the room, a phone in one hand and menu half-stretched out in the other.

Scott closes the front door behind him but doesn't join them straight away. He lingers in the hallway, glancing at the kitchen doorway. He watches his dad's eyebrows go up when Stiles tries to act all casual and calm when mentioning that he got a tattoo, pulling the sleeve of his plaid shirt up a little to show it off now that he doesn't have the plastic wrap stopping him, having been able to take it off before they even left the parlour.

Then his dad's eyes go wide, eyebrows completely disappearing when Lydia reaches up to move her hair out of her face, letting him spot her tattoo as well. Scott's pretty sure his dad says something along the lines of, "your parents are going to kill me, you know that? I'm supposed to be a responsible adult looking after you." 

But a few seconds later and he doesn't seem to be as worried about that, just shaking his head at the two of them. Scott really can't believe how much things have changed in the past few months. Never would he have expected any of this to happen. His dad having a normal conversation with Lydia and Stiles in a way that makes it feel like he's always been a part of their lives, like he's used to this kind of thing. It's weird but Scott isn't complaining. 

He wonders how different his mom's reaction's going to be because he's willing to bet that Stiles is going to tell her as soon as he steps foot inside the same room as her, and Lydia's most likely going to get dragged into it. She'll probably send them that look and smile, and possibly also try and be a little stern considering they got _tattoos_ and she knows how both their parents are going to react.

"Scotty?" Stiles calls to him, and Scott blinks, quickly looking at the kitchen to find Stiles peeking his head out. "Come on, dude. Your dad's ordering Mexican, and if you don't get your ass in here, I'm stealing yours and splitting it with Lydia." 

Scott grins and Stiles grins right back at him, all dorky and adorable. He finally moves away from the door to join him as his dad slips past him, his phone now pressed to his hear as he starts talking into it, heading for the living room.

Stiles hooks an arm around Scott's shoulders when he reaches him, tugging him into the kitchen with him.

"Aren't high school sweethearts who bend the rules supposed to be nice to each other?" Scott asks teasingly. "I'm pretty sure that threatening to deprive me of Mexican goes against the rules that we aren't bending. And also the rules of being my boyfriend."

"He has got a point," Lydia says, and Scott looks over at her to find her smiling, another menu in her hands but being ignored in favour of the conversation. She shrugs when Stiles shoots her a mock glare. "What? He's right."

Then she smiles and adds, "besides, I would just share my half with him anyway."

Stiles lets out an exasperated noise that has no real bite to it. "You know, you two really take the fun out of this relationship of ours."

Lydia steps forward, her head tilting slightly as she hums. Her mouth curves up as she leans up and pauses, then says, "whatever you say, sweetie." 

Then she presses a soft kiss to the corner of his mouth. The type that the three of them have gotten used to sharing when they're going somewhere and are saying a quick _I love you, I'll see you later,_ and when they're just relaxing after whatever drama decided to pop up the day before, cuddled up together on the couch or the bed and one of them just can't help it. A little _god, I'm so lucky, I love you so much, please never let this end._

"You know I'm right," Stiles mutters, but he drops it at that. Scott can't help but find it adorable that even after the few months that they've been doing this, that they've officially been together, Stiles' cheeks still turn a light shade of red whenever either of them does something like that. 

Lydia just turns back to the menu in her hand and Stiles pulls himself away from Scott, walking over to the fridge and opening it up without a word. It's a good thing they've already been staying here for a few nights and that Scott's dad is used to Stiles doing things like this.

Scott leans back against the island, peering at the menu over Lydia's shoulder. Just as he goes to point at something, Stiles casually asking the two of them if they want a drink, his dad walks back in.

"Okay, dinner's been ordered." He glances at the three of them with smiles. "Anyone up for a movie?"

* * *

 

The end credits finally roll, his dad says goodnight to the three of them, saying something about paperwork for an investigation, and then a few minutes later they follow, heading for the guest bedrooms.

His dad doesn't know about the three of them or anything about their relationship, so it was no surprise when he told them he only had two guest bedrooms and asked if two of them would be okay with sharing. Scott and Stiles had just said they would, knowing that Lydia would end up in beside them later anyway.

The only reason Scott hasn't told his dad the truth is because they've only just reached a good point in their relationship, and Scott really doesn't know how to bring that kind of thing up with him yet. He will eventually (probably before they leave) but for now, they're all okay with going along with him assuming they're just friends.

Scott's really just glad that his mom figured it out before even he did, and has been completely supportive the entire way. Although, he definitely wasn't thinking that when she tried to give him another _talk_ after he asked if Stiles and Lydia could stay over. She agreed to it, but still. His face was on fire for about another half an hour after.

Scott moves onto the bed, Lydia following while Stiles heads into the bathroom that they're discovered is joined onto the next guest bedroom. The door clicks shut behind him as Scott leans back against the wooden headboard, shifting his head to look at Lydia. 

A small smile spreads across his face as she approaches the bed. He stretches an arm out and as soon as she's close enough, he leans forward, pulling her in the rest of the way and wrapping an arm around her middle. Her legs move to rest on either side of his as he runs a hand up her arm.

She makes a noise, obviously pleased as she places a hand on his bicep, her lips curving up. "You're affectionate today," she notes, before leaning in, and Scott leans up. Their lips slot together, all familiar and warm and making Scott's stomach do that twisty, floaty thing that he's sure he needs to get checked out by a doctor. 

"So are you and Stiles," he murmurs as she pulls back just enough that their lips still brush. "Maybe Derek was right about the pack tattoos after all." 

Lydia rolls her eyes and fully sits back. "I doubt it."

Scott glances down at her hand still on his arm, her fingers running up and down, dragging her fingertips and nails lightly over his skin. 

"I've never read anything about it in any of the books Deaton gave me," she adds. "And yes, I know; Derek's whole family probably knows more about this stuff than any book, but I just—I don't know." She shakes her head, a little frown line between her brows. "Something felt off about it all." 

Scott sees her point and he can't disagree. It definitely felt more like Derek was trying to hint at something to three of them, despite the entire pack being there at the time. It's not like none of them know about their relationship; they don't actively try and hide it from them. But they've also never explicitly said anything. Maybe that's where Derek was trying to go with that whole conversation.

"I have to say," the bathroom door opens and Stiles steps out, now changed into his pajamas, his eyes moving to the two of them, "if this is your new idea of sexy talk or whatever, I'm concerned and frankly, not sure I'm gonna be that into it."

Scott and Lydia both roll their eyes. Scott moves his hand from Lydia's arm, setting it next to them on the bed and motioning with his head.

"Shut up and get over here." 

"Okay, fine," Stiles says, moving over to the little wooden table he threw his bag onto the night before. "But we're still watching Star Wars, and I swear if I hear Derek's name one time throughout it, you two are—" He pauses. "Actually, no, making you both sleep alone would be too cruel. Even for me."

He turns back to them, laptop in hand, along with a family-sized bag of M&M's.

"You mean you don't want to sleep alone," Lydia says, as he settles onto the bed with a little hop. "You would just be punishing yourself." 

"Exactly, and I am not one to deprive myself of things I enjoy," Stiles says, switching his laptop on as Lydia finally shifts off of Scott. "And I really like sharing a bed with the two of you so there's no point in making us all suffer."

Scott shakes his head in amusement while Lydia tucks her legs underneath her, one of his arms still around her as she leans into his side. Their fingers lace together easily when Scott places a hand on top of hers. He gently strokes her knuckle with his thumb, careful not to irritate the tattoo just above it. 

"Okay," Stiles says, typing away at his laptop while Lydia snatches the M&M's away, setting the packet in Scott's lap, "Star Wars first. Then The Notebook. And then—" 

"I'm stuck between Legally Blonde and the new Spiderman movie," Scott says, and takes an M&M, popping it into his mouth.

Stiles stares at him. "The fact that those are the two you're stuck between both amazes and doesn't surprise me," he says, shaking his head slowly. 

Scott rolls his eyes, nudging Stiles' shoulder. "Shut up. They're good movies." 

"Well, I vote Spiderman," he says, to neither of their surprises.

Lydia makes a noise of agreement and they both look at Scott, waiting for his answer. He smiles, gestures for Stiles to go ahead and so he types away some more before moving the laptop from his knees to Scott's lap, switching it for the M&M's.

He hits play then he curls into Scott's side, his head leaned back so that it's half on his shoulder, half on his chest. Both him and Lydia are practically cuddling into Scott, and he doesn't mind in the slightest.

He shifts his eyes to the screen as the music starts up. Then a second later, Stiles' hand is rustling in the packet of M&M's, dragging Scott's attention back to it. His gaze lingers on Stiles' tattoo, and somewhere in the back of his mind, he still thinks that there had to be some truth to what Derek said, or else he wouldn't be this interested in them.

He gently catches Stiles' wrist halfway to his mouth, an M&M held between his fingers. As Scott lightly strokes the two bands, his touch light and careful, just like with Lydia's, Stiles tilts his head up to look at him.

A small, fond smile forms on his lips as he stays quiet, aware of the intro to the movie playing away. He just stretches up as far as he can, and Scott meets him the rest of the way. His thumb is still tracing the outline of Stiles' tattoo as he kisses him, and even when he pulls back. 

They settle back down, but Scott doesn't remove his hand from Stiles' wrist or let go of Lydia's hand. He just lays with them, all three of them relaxed, content, watching Star Wars and eating the M&M's while Scott quietly thinks about how it's all so perfect. Most time spent with Stiles and Lydia is perfect to him, but there's just something about that day.

Who knows, maybe it really is because of the tattoos, but either way, Scott's just glad that they decided to have this weekend in San Francisco, away from Beacon Hills. A break away from it all, even if only for a few days, is definitely what they needed.


End file.
